Zugunruhe (pronounced zoo gen ROO ha) is a German word for the "migratory restlessness" that describes the behavioral changes in many species prior to a journey central to their survival.

I came across the word in a book I was reading and knew it fit the feeling we are having about getting on the road. We are counting down the days! We leave one week from today. Every day in between is filled with last minute things that we need/want to do before we go.

Have you ever been on a plane waiting to take off and you feel the plane pull away from the loading area and think "great, we are taking off" only to taxi to another spot. You look out the window and see another plane roar down the runway..."great, now we're off" Nope, you move ahead and turn a corner and you see out the window that you're waiting in a line behind other planes..."Damn!" You know it's coming, it really isn't that long, but it feels like forever! This is how the last 5 months and 5 days (and 10 hours, but who's counting?) have felt. I mean, I didn't move into a truck camper to live 5 miles from "home" in a parking lot style RV park. I'm excited and nervous at the same time about what lies ahead.

I've never been one to do anything without a plan. The plan is very loose as of right now. We are heading to Laughlin, Nevada to spend a few days gambling and visiting with friends. Paul didn't want a retirement party, so instead a bunch of us are meeting there to celebrate his retirement and the beginning of a new adventure for both of us. After that we are going to The Grand Canyon, weather permitting. I have never been and Paul hasn't been there since he was a kid. We are hoping to be able to drive a little of the historic Route 66 on the way there. After we've had our fill of gazing into the large hole in Arizona, we plan on driving through New Mexico and Texas towards the gulf coast. I'd like to stop in Austin, Texas to do a little family research. Once we hit the gulf coast, we will stop in places that look interesting, while slowly making our way to the Florida Keys. Once we get to the Keys there may not be any open campgrounds.We will figure it all out as we go. The only real plan we have is to be in Nashville, Tennessee in the third week of March to meet with my friends of The No Shoes Nation and kick off Kenny Chesney's tour. This girl has her priorities!